Well, what do you know. The last album of the fifties, another jazz album, and it is actually one I loved listening to.

Jazz critics criticized Dave Brubeck, probably because he was “too commercial”, I guess. This album actually has a hit song on it. What’s more, a song everybody knows (and you can’t but like). Knowing the song that well from commercials and tv series, I never thought of the fact that it was actually someone’s song. Ironically, Take Five is not from Dave Brubeck, but from its companion Paul Desmond. Too bad.

All the other songs however are Dave Brubeck's and they are also extremely nice. Dave plays with rhythms (slow, fast, only drums, fast again) and makes the music much more outstanding than the other (instrumental) jazz albums I have heard until now (except maybe Brilliant Corners from Thelonious Monk). Especially Blue Rondo à la turk is an extraordinary song that drags you along from the first notes on. …